Germany will help rebuild Lanka: Fischer

 
Berlin is ready to promote tourism and push for debt relief and free access to European markets to help tsunami-battered Sri Lanka get back on its feet, German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer said yesterday.
Fischer said after talks here with his Sri Lankan counterpart Lakshman Kadirgamar, was ready for "immediate help in the reconstruction" of the island, which saw three-quarters of its coastline scoured by the December 26 tsunami at a cost of more than 30,000 lives.

"We will focus on projects... everywhere in the country," Fischer said, adding these would be "at all levels" and would include "short-term, middle-term and long-term" reconstruction efforts.

"A tsunami early warning system is crucial for the whole region. The reconstruction of tourism will also be another important development," said the foreign minister, who arrived here late Monday after touring Thailand and Indonesia.
"We discussed debt relief... Germany is very positive about that. A second issue which is also very important for Sri Lanka is the granting of free access to the European markets. "This will give the Sri Lankan economy new opportunities for earning money and this could be invested in the business cycle and go towards... reconstruction."

Germany, he added was also involved in water purification and the restoration of sewage systems in Sri Lanka as part of the authorities' attempts to prevent the outbreak of dangerous diseases.
Kadirgamar said the issues of debt relief and access to European markets "are very important to Sri Lanka".
Though the outcome of the initiative would not be known for some time, he said, "the very fact that we have Germany's support for it is hugely encouraging."
 
 
 
  Germany's response to the disaster, he added, had been "absolutely fantastic." Aside from sending specialist teams and large machinery to assist in relief efforts in tsunami-hit countries, Berlin has also committed 500 million euros (668 million dollars) in aid while donations from German businesses and private individuals total about 330 million euros.
Fischer met President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga yesterday before attending a memorial service at the German embassy here where representatives of German relief organisations working on the island and a team of forensic specialists who have been helping identify bodies of those killed by the savage waves will also be gathered. AFP